The late JM Kariuki was an orator that unsettled the then government and business tycoons alike. Besides his political endeavours, JM had well-oiled pockets.
However, he was a wealthy Kenyan who wanted to reduce income inequalities. This forced him to coin the phrase, “We do not want a Kenya of ten millionaires and ten million beggars.”
The source of his money was mysterious even to top government quarters. According to a book, Kenya: A history since independence, authored by Charles Hornsby, JM was a business broker locally and internationally. This brokerage helped him get shares in several companies.
Some of the companies that JM had shares in included Caltex, Block Hotels, Kenya Breweries, CMC Motors, Nairobi International Casino, Standard Charted Bank, Lonrho and British American Tobacco.
He owned several farms, racehorses as well as a tour company. Another source of his great wealth, according to Hornby, was state loans.
JM’s nationalistic approach to issues regardless of his fat pockets and tribe earned him a fanatical following. He was only compared to the late Tom Mboya in terms of national acceptance.
Hornsby wrote, “Around him gathered a coalition of representatives of the poor and landless, critics of Kiambu dominance and those opposed to Kikuyu settlement in the Rift and Coast. His allies in the Cabinet included James Nyamweya, Dr Zachary T Onyonka and Shako.”
However, JM’s empire started crumbling in the seventies. He later died under unclear circumstances.